Hamas arms smuggler killed in Gaza drone strike

An Israel Defense Forces drone strike killed a prominent Hamas terrorist responsible for smuggling weapons into the Gaza Strip through Egypt’s Sinai, the military announced on Wednesday morning.

Wissam Abu Ishaq was involved in procuring arms for Hamas, smuggling weapons through the Rafah Crossing and cross-border tunnels in the area, according to an Israel Defense Forces statement.

The strike in southern Gaza was carried out in accordance with information provided by the Military Intelligence Directorate, the statement added.

Israeli troops took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah Crossing with Egypt on the morning of May 7, as tanks from the military’s 162nd Division’s 401st Armored Brigade rolled up to the border station.

On May 29, the IDF announced that troops had also taken “operational control” of the Philadelphi Corridor, the 8.7-mile-long border area with Sinai. Israeli forces had so far uncovered 20 tunnels underneath it, IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told reporters at a press briefing.

Israeli Air Force fighter jets and drones struck “dozens” of targets throughout Gaza on Tuesday, including booby-trapped buildings, terror infrastructure, attack tunnels and gunmen, according to the IDF.

Among the targets destroyed was a launch pad ready to fire rockets at the Jewish state from Rafah.

Also on Tuesday, an IAF strike in Gaza City killed Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist Fadi al-Wadiya, who was involved in developing missiles for the Iranian proxy group. According to the military, al-Wadiya served as PIJ’s “source of knowledge” in the fields of electronics and chemistry.

The strike was denounced by the Paris-based Doctors Without Borders NGO, which named al-Wadiya as a staffer and said he was targeted while on his way to “provide vital medical care to wounded victims of the endless massacres across Gaza.”

The IDF responded on X: “Always check to see who you’re hiring...Your colleague, Fadi Al-Wadiya, was a significant terrorist in Islamic Jihad.”

“He advanced the terrorist organization’s rocket array, also known as a way to endanger the lives of civilians. He is just another case of terrorists in Gaza exploiting the civilian population as human shields,” the post continued.

Soldiers of the 162nd Division’s Nahal Brigade are continuing targeted counterterrorism raids in the Rafah area, locating rifles, ammunition and explosive charges in Hamas hideouts in the city.

IDF forces discovered booby-trapped tunnel shafts in civilian homes, as well as a refrigerator rigged with explosives, the army said, sharing footage of the findings. At the direction of the brigade’s Fire Control Center, “many” structures that posed a threat were destroyed.

Israeli ground forces entered Gaza on Oct. 27, following a weeks-long air campaign in response to the Oct. 7 massacre. Jerusalem’s stated goals for the war are to destroy Hamas as a military and governing force in Gaza, ensure that it can not threaten Israel again and return all hostages.